


Contrast

by GreyPezzola



Series: A Study in Synonyms [13]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Love Languages, Mild Sexual Content, Mild Smut, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, if you've ever played dragon age there is blood, there's blood mentioned in this but like after a battle blood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-04
Updated: 2017-03-04
Packaged: 2018-09-27 03:40:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,770
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9953195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GreyPezzola/pseuds/GreyPezzola
Summary: It strikes him one morning as she’s wandering about their room just how disgustingly in love with her he is.  Maker’s breath, she isn’t even doing anything important, just looking at her meager collection of garments and trying to remember if she has anyone to impress that day.He’s laughing at something Sigrun has whispered to him conspiratorially when she is hit once again with his beauty.  He’s still got smears of darkspawn blood on him, a nasty bruise is forming on one cheek, and he’s laughing, head thrown back as the gray dawn lights his face and she is reminded just how utterly in love with him she is.They may have different ways of communicating it, but Alistair and Sigyn are still very much in love.





	1. Charm

**Author's Note:**

> This is nothing but fluff, pure tooth-rotting fluff.

It strikes him one morning as she’s wandering about their room just how disgustingly in love with her he is.  She’s naked, picking out clothes for the day, and the sun is filtering in through their window.  Now that they have settled, at least temporarily, she’s lost a bit of her deep tan from their constant travels, but she is no less radiant in the morning light.  Maker’s breath, she isn’t even doing anything important, just looking at her meager collection of garments and trying to remember if she has anyone to impress that day.

“It’s just that I caught wind that a particularly lovely smuggler is currently lying low in Amaranthine and I would love to say hello.” She says as she stretches her arms over her head.  Sigyn is still firm muscle under the layer of fat and he’s never been able to resist how he can see each muscle move.  Nor has he been able to resist how she jiggles, so as she drops her arms and releases the tension from her shoulders he can’t help but smile fondly at her form.

“Is this the lovely smuggler who offered to teach you her particular brand of sneaking and stabbing in exchange for a night in bed together?” Alistair asks lightly as she picks out a shirt of his.  It’s a dark gray shirt he wore the day before that he hadn’t gotten anything on, but still, he had been helping fix part of the wall.  Regardless of how it must smell, she pulls the loose garment over her head before walking back to their bed.

“If I recall correctly the offer was to both of us, Alistair.” She crawls onto the bed and cocks an eyebrow.  He leans forward and kisses her.

“I wasn’t ready at that point to share.” He says as she takes his invitation and curls into his arms.

Sigyn presses a kiss into the juncture of his neck, “I know.  And I will never think badly of you for your reservations.  Your comfort is important.”

“Careful, Commander, people might think you love me if you keep saying things like that.  Might catch wind I warm your bed.” He says in a mock serious tone.

“Oh stone, not that.” She says drily, “Anything but that.  What will people think?”

“Everyone knows you only keep me around for my good looks.” Alistair’s face starts to betray his smile.

“The good looks are a bonus, but I keep you around for your body heat and occasionally for your more... generous attributes.” Her voice mirrors his serious tone, though she seems to be succeeding better at keeping her voice steady.

He chuckles, “Ah, how could I forget.” Sigyn then kisses him again and he smiles, “Why my shirt?”

“It smells nice.” She says.  “Want me to take it off?”

“Maybe later I can take it off you.  I was curious, I did wear it to work in yesterday.” Alistair says casually.  She hums at his words.  “So, lovely smuggler?”

“Need to make sure her business isn’t too illegal.  Being warden commander is a hell of a thing.” Sigyn tucks her face back into his neck.

“Lest others forget you could have run a Carta, which I’m very glad you don’t.” He says into her hair.  She pulls away and gives him a look.  “Well, if you were running a Carta, we wouldn’t have met and that’s a thought I don’t like.”

“Now who’s being sentimental.  What will they say?  The warden commander seduced one of her subordinates?”

Alistair tugs her gently into a less than lazy kiss.  He rests his forehead on hers.  “And don’t you know it.”

She pecks his lips and then removes herself from his hold despite his pout of protest.  Sigyn gets off the bed and Alistair watches as she finds a pair of pants and a belt. She cinches the belt over his shirt so it hangs a bit less loosely on her.  She then goes over to her small mirror and fiddles with a few of her piercings.  The small hoops are removed and replaced with small gold studs.  She then frowns and pokes the bridge of her nose where two silver balls rest and picks up the small gold bar that she sometimes replaces the silver one with.  He loves that she doesn’t like replacing that piece of jewelry, but she’s thinking about it just so she will match the earrings as a way to contrast his shirt.

Alistair gets off of the bed, taking a blanket with him, and crosses over to her and her silent contemplation of the finicky jewelry.  He wraps his arms around her shoulders and rests his chin on her head.  “You’re so warm.”

“I haven’t been wandering around the cold room.” he murmurs.  “Do you really have to— you know?”

“Leave?” she asks, looking at him in their reflection.

“Yeah.” He says.

She puts down the jewelry.  “It’s only a night, maybe two.”

“I know.” She turns in his arms and goes on her tip toes.  He meets her kiss.

“Do you want me to stay?” she asks softly as he buries his face into her neck despite the awkward angle.  

“It feels foolish.” His voice is muffled against her neck.

“Alistair, do you want me to stay?” she asks again, running a hand through his hair.

“Yes.” He admits, pulling away so he can make eye contact with her.

Sigyn cups his face, “Then I’ll stay.  The lovely smuggler can wait a day or two.” He kisses her and pulls her back towards the bed.  As he sits on the bed and pulls her up so she can straddle his lap, “May I ask what’s bringing this on?”

“I just really love you,” Alistair says.  She’s backlit by the sun, it brings out the dark red in her hair which makes his heart ache.

“I know.  I love you too.” She says, tossing her hair back out of her face.  He gently presses a kiss to her brand and she stills.  “Al-Alistair?”

“You are so beautiful.  You wear my shirts because you think they smell nice.  I love how every bit of jewelry you wear has a story.  I love how your hair looks in the morning. I love that you change and adapt plans for me.  I love how your body moves and how soft you are.  I cannot believe how unfathomably lucky I am to have you.” His voice catches, “Maker’s breath, it feels like my heart is going to explode if I loved you any harder.”  She cups his face and kisses his nose.

“The lovely smuggler can definitely wait.” She says with a fond smile that makes his heart skip a beat.  Alistair wraps his arms more securely around her and leans back onto the bed.  Sigyn removes the belt and shimmies off her pants before snuggling into his arms.  “I love you too, Alistair.”

They spend a lazy morning, then a lazy afternoon curled up in bed together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My workplace likes to talk about love languages and from what I can tell, Alistair uses words of affirmation, for the most part, followed by physical touch and quality time.
> 
> The five love languages are Words of Affirmation, Acts of Service, Giving/Receiving Gifts, Quality Time, and Physical Touch. While I'm not 100% sure I believe in these, I find it's useful as a thought experiment.


	2. Cherish

He’s laughing at something Sigrun has whispered to him conspiratorially when she is hit once again with his beauty.It’s just before dawn, they had been up late handling a few darkspawn just a bit away from the Keep, and now they are eating some food before they all crash.He’s still got smears of darkspawn blood on him, a nasty bruise is forming on one cheek, and he’s laughing, head thrown back as the gray dawn lights his face.Sigyn is utterly disarmed and she stumbles over nothing, almost dropping her plate of food.

“You all right, dear?” he asks as she straightens.Sigyn nods, not trusting her words.His eyes soften and he scooches over so she can sit down next to him.Alistair seems to understand what she wants and wraps an arm around her shoulders.It’s not the first time she’s felt this utterly in love with him and, maybe, it’s just the exhaustion talking, but she presses herself firmly against him.Alistair is so warm and solid and there and she is content to listen to him talk with Sigrun and hear his voice rumble through his chest.

The food tastes like nothing, she is only mechanically chewing the warm bread and moist cheese as she sits and feels so utterly at home here.The world moves around her, but all she can focus on is his voice as it reverberates through him and his warmth.Even if it is the exhaustion, she wishes this moment to never end.That she can stay here, pressed up against a man that more stable than the Keep's walls, more solid than the stone of its foundations, and more safe than any fortress could ever hope to be.

“Sigyn?” she blinks a few times and makes a hum of acknowledgment.“You with us?” 

“Yes.” She says a bit too quickly.“Yes, I am.What were you saying?”

“Right, bed.” Alistair says warmly.Stone, he’s always so warm.He changes his arm’s position and then he’s helping her to her feet.Someone, probably Sigrun, says she’ll take their plates and Alistair thanks her before directing his attention again to Sigyn.“Come on, love.”

Sigyn finds herself being guided to their room.Their room, stone, that is so nice to think.His hands are gentle as Alistair steers her up the stairs and he’s humming.

“I love you.” she says.

Alistair stops humming, “I love you, too.”He shifts his arm so he can rub a thumb across her shoulder as they climb the last flight of stairs.Sigyn smiles as he resumes humming and then he’s opening their door.He does not remove his hand from her as they enter their room, instead, Alistair guides Sigyn to their bed and helps her get out of her clothes.He then helps her sit on their bed and kneels between her knees so he can wipe off the worst of the remaining gore, though somewhere in the back of her very fuzzy mind she knows that they will need to fully bathe in the morning.

As he pulls away from his position between her knees so he can grab her a shirt to sleep in, she catches his face between her hands.“Alistair, I am so in love with you.” 

He flushes and looks pleased, but he still says, “I know, but you are exhausted.”

Sigyn yawns and says, “And you are beautiful.” He kisses the inside of her wrist and smiles fondly.

“Thank you.You need sleep.” He lightly pushes her back onto the bed so she is lying down.She’s mostly asleep by the time he crawls into bed with her, but she’s awake enough to curl into him and murmur that she loves him one more time.

He’s snoring.It’s not something he does often, but Alistair is snoring softly into her hair.Warm afternoon sunlight is filtering in through a window and making his hair look like gold.Sigyn runs a reverent hand down his shoulders, marveling at his freckles.She’s contented herself in the past with attempts to kiss all of them; she’s always wanted to count each one, but there are so many, or draw constellations across them, but she’s still learning the stars.She shushes him with a gentle kiss to his collarbone as he mutters something as she pulls away. 

It doesn’t take her long to gather what she needs.  Sigyn places the tray down on her desk and then crawls back onto the bed.

“Alistair.” she murmurs as she runs a hand up and down his shoulder.His eyes flutter open and the feeling of awe just as powerful it had been earlier in the morning.“Alistair, good morning.”

“Mmmfh.Sigyn, wha—” his voice is thick with sleep and his hair is fully ruffled.Sigyn gently places a hand on his warm, unbruised cheek. 

“I brought breakfast,” she supplies, “or lunch.”He lifts a warm arm and wraps it around her.

“Or we could sleep.” He tugs her to his chest.

“If you insist.” she says, “But you are the one who has poor night vision.”

“Compared to you.” He grumbles.Alistair then rolls so he’s on top of her, arms caged around her so she can’t escape as he rubs a stubbly cheek against hers.She squeaks and giggles at the sensation and Alistair chuckles sleepily.After a few moments and a sleepy kiss that tastes terrible, he rolls back onto his side, freeing her.Sigyn presses a kiss to his temple and wriggles out of his grasp.She crosses the room and gathers the tray. “What’s all this?”

“Breakfast.” he gives her an amused look and sits up so she can place the tray on his lap and clamber onto the bed. “It’s just food.”

“Mhmm.” Alistair seems unconvinced but he still hands her a piece of toast with egg before he digs into his own.They eat in companionable silence as Alistair slowly wakes up further.He’s draped only in blankets and sunlight and she can now see more of his freckles and scars.The afternoon hangs in a sunny moment.

When they are done, Alistair takes the tray and puts in on the ground.He then faces Sigyn and taps her cheek.At her nod, he kisses her.It’s a lazy kiss, but she still holds him close as if he is something precious when it's over.

“Sigyn, are you going to tell me what’s going on with you?” he asks softly. She runs a hand through his hair and he leans into the touch.

“I’m just in love with you.”

He smiles, “It’s not that I’m unhappy to hear this, I’m wondering what brought this up.” 

“Your laugh.” She states.

“Ah.” He kisses her. “Shall I just go along with this, then?”

She slides her hands down from his hair, gently over his bruised cheek, to rest them on his chest. “Only if you want.”

“I want.” Sigyn kisses him, insinuating herself into his space more thoroughly.There’s no rush in the kiss, but he is more than happy to lie back as she kisses and nibbles her way down his chest.He helps her remove the shirt and pants she had worn to get food and splays his finger across her hips.She sighs happily as he traces a stretch mark with a finger as she grinds down against him until he’s hard.Their pace is achingly slow and when they are finished, she seems content just to run her hands through his hair as they cuddle.

Then she peels away from him to find a cloth so she can wipe them both down.He’s still sensitive as she cleans up the evidence of their enjoyment, but she places a soothing hand across his hips and presses a kiss onto his abdomen.She then draws him out of bed and leads him to their bathing chamber. 

Alistair is surprised to find a tub full of water when they enter. “When did you—?”

“I asked very nicely and kept you occupied.” Sigyn says.He kisses her cheek and she blushes. “It’s not just because— we also need to get the rest of the battle off of us.”

“Still. I am a very lucky man to have a woman like you so utterly in love with me.” He says as he holds out a hand to help her into the tub.Sigyn hesitates and he rolls his eyes. “I want you in here with me, you can adapt whatever plan you had, oh warden commander.”

Sigyn sighs and shakes her head but joins him in nonetheless.The water is no longer hot, she had spent just a little bit too long occupying Alistair, though she knows herself well enough to know that as soon as he sighs out her name, all punctuality of hers goes out the window.Still, the water is warm as she settles between his thighs.Alistair does not let her focus all her attentions on him as he is also fairly insistent on bathing her as well.But he always enjoys how she melts into him when he washes her hair, so she indulges him with no complaint.When they are done washing, they stay pressed together until the water is tepid.Then he is helping her out of the tub and she is appreciating how the water drips off of him.But as he helps dry off her hair with a soft cloth, Sigyn is certain that he know just how much she loves him, even if she can’t always find the words.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again with love languages, Sigyn is probably services, quality time, and actions. She tries to do words because Alistair is good with words, but for someone who can talk her way out of any situation, via charm, persuasion, or coercion, when she uses words it doesn't feel like enough. (That being said, she also likes giving gifts, but that is more a platonic thing.)
> 
> Also, still in camp dwarves are not just short humans and I totally believe that dwarves have really good darkvision.


End file.
